Salty and Sweet
by EnticingHell
Summary: An intriguing, tall boy with a secret. A stubborn, independent girl with nothing to lose.
1. Chapter 1

Fresh

Sweet Pea x OC

"Jane. Jane. Jane. Hello, earth to Jane!"

Snap. Back to reality.

"What do you want?" She asked, her eyes glaring at her long time friend Freda.

"You zoned out again. Just trying to save you from the embarrassment of being caught by someone else."

"Thank you, really, with all my heart." Jane sneered, Freda giggled.

"The Southsiders start today." Freda prompted, her dark brown eyes wide and filled with amusement. That was true, Jane thought to herself. With a yank, she grabbed her books from her locker and slammed it shut, just in time to catch sight of the front doors of Riverdale High swinging open. A herd of leather jacket clad ladies and men strode in, led by the infamous Jughead Jones. To his right, a much taller boy Jane never saw before. His unruly dark hair was pushed away from his deep brown, almost dark grey eyes, forming a curl. Jane's heart caught in her throat as she observed the rest of him. A serpent jacket, dark jeans on legs that seemed to go on forever, and big work boots. Man he was beautiful.

The group of Southsiders came face to face with Veronica Lodge and her welcoming committee and Jane watched as Cheryl Blossom and Reggie Mantle approached, obviously initiating drama. Freda and Jane stared on as the two groups came face to face, only feet away from the threat match that seemed to be going on. Finally, the groups dispersed and Jughead and the others started away from the Bulldog group. Jughead reached his hands out to urge the taller, handsome boy away from the scene and ended up guiding him directly into Jane. She stumbled back against her locker as a strong whiff of leather and scented hair gel hit her almost as forcefully as the tall boy.

Jane realized quickly that Freda had managed to dodge the rest of the group, but she was too zoned out and thinking about this man already.

"Woah there, little girl." A deep, smooth voice said into her ear, two large, strong hands on her shoulders, holding her in place.

Jane looked up, catching the dark eyes staring back at her, almost amused.

"Really? You crashed into me." Jane stated, her green eyes wide.

"Nice to meet you too." And with that, the tall boy turned on his heel and jogged to catch up with his friends.

Jane stood there in a daze, quite unsure of what just happened, and positive that the universe had just done something in her favour.

"Um, what the hell was that? Jane?" Freda shrieked, and Jane immediately shushed her, not wanting any further attention drawn onto the two of them.

"Shut up, Freda. He bumped into me, thats it." Jane shook her head, her dark auburn hair falling into her face. She pushed it back and started off towards class, leaving an annoyed Freda standing in awe.

Later after the trecherous hours spent at Riverdale High, Jane felt the urge arise for a vanilla milkshake from Pop's, the number one hang out in the town. With Freda volunteering her after school hours at the library, the girl decided to go alone.

Jane pulled her beaten car into the parking lot, noticing a couple of the other spots filled with motorcycles. Thinking nothing of the fact, she hopped out of her car, slinging her bag over her shoulder and made her way inside to grab a booth.

"Vanilla shake and an order of fries." Jane told the waitress while she made herself comfortable, pulling her notebook out of her bag and preparing to finish a paper for English class. It was when the waitress turned away that Jane looked to the other side of the shop and noticed the gang of Southside Serpents squished into a booth a couple tables away. In wake of all that had been happening, the accusations of Serpents and Southsiders in general, Jane really didn't discriminate. To her, they're all just people trying to make their way.

When her order arrived, Jane thanked the waitress and grabbed a single fry and dipped it into her milkshake before popping it into her mouth.

After scribbling her words for what seemed to be only a few minutes, she looked up to the booth of Southsiders and made very obvious but brief eye contact with the tall boy who had bumped into her earlier. There was a curious twinkle in his eye and she raised a brow, as if to ask 'Can I help you?' Which resulted in the boy giving her a small smile before turning back to his friends and their conversation.

Jane didn't know why but the action sent butterflies through her stomach, something she hadn't felt in a year.

A year ago, she was a victim of the nasty notebook made by Chuck Clayton's gang. Jane had called for the flirtatious callings of a senior named Isaac, who she was convinced was as good as gold. It turned out he was as dirty as the unwashed football jersey he wore. Since those times Jane never got involved with anyone else out of fear of her trust being betrayed and her heart being broken yet again.

The girl shook her head away from her past and continued to observe the group. They consisted of a small, pink haired girl, a stocky yet classy looking boy, the tall one that made Jane's heart flutter, and a few others. They were loud and proud and unashamed of who they were. The mere sight of them made Jane wonder their back stories, where they came from, if they grew up here, how they got involved with the Serpents.

After the paper was written and the milkshake was gone, Jane decided to pack up and take off home for the night. She never minded coming to Pop's alone, she never minded being alone in general.

At the same time the small girl stood to leave, it seemed as though the unruly gang of Southsiders were ready as well, causing them to walk out behind Jane. It was little things like this, fear of being watched by many even though the group probably didn't even notice her. It panicked her and she felt as though she'd trip and bring even more attention to herself. She hurriedly walked to her car and slid inside, watching the leather clad gang climb onto their motorcycles and pull away, but not before she received another look from mystery boy. What was it with her? Oh no. Butterflies. Again. 


	2. Chapter 2

Monday's suck. There is no point to saying that, as most people agree. Except for the 'glass half full' kind of people, who believe Monday's exist to refresh you and motivate you at the beginning of a new week. Jane decided she was not one of those people as she rolled out of bed.

Pulling on a pair of jeans, a black camisole and her favourite knitted navy cardigan, she examined herself in the mirror. Too plain. Hm, maybe a little something extra is what she needed. Jane combed her long hair and divided it into two halves with a part down the middle. Her fingers twisted her hair with expertise as she pulled and tucked both sides into double braids. She hadn't worn her hair like this since her days in middle school. Perhaps now they suited her, and instead of looking childish, she believed the pulled back hair showed off her face and gave her a sense of maturity. Who knew a hairstyle could boost her confidence so much?

No, she thought to herself. This had nothing to do with wanting to stand out and catch a certain serpent's attention. She spent the last year blending in, Jane has worked too hard to be thrown back into the mess that is Riverdale drama.

With a sigh, Jane grabbed her bag and her freshly brewed travel mug full of tea and snuck out the door, careful not to wake her mother who had been working the task of backshift the last few months at the hospital.

The pair lived on the Northside, a rather quiet mother/daughter duo. Jane's mother is a nurse, and her was father long gone. She has one older brother who lives with his girlfriend in Greendale, who she rarely sees.

Jane climbed into her car and pulled the door shut, and pushed the key into the ignition and

gave it a twist. It was a chilly day in Riverdale, and she found herself turning on the heat for the first time in a while. Lately, her thoughts had been wandering to the boy who kept meeting her gaze. He held it too, always challenging her to looking away first, almost like a staring contest. During these staring contests, Jane took the opportunity, only when feeling brave enough, to admire the astonishing features of this boy. From the hair curl to the Serpent tattoo always poking out from under the collar of his shirt.

Jane! No! She thought to herself, deciding to focus on the drive. Now was not the time to let her mind wander.

The girl pulled into the parking lot of Riverdale High, careful not to go near the bikes parked close by. She forced herself to concentrate on making it to her first class without letting her mind wander.

"Jane." Came Freda's voice from behind her, and Jane was glad to have a distraction from her thoughts.

"Freda." replied the girl. Jane held the door for her friend to enter the school and followed behind her, heading for their lockers.

"You've got an onlooker." Freda observed, wiggling her eyebrows at Jane before minding her own business and turning to her locker.

Jane glanced over to her left, seeing no one looking on, but then to her right, where Serpent boy stood in a group of loud and laughing teens. His eyes were fixed on her, and Jane had to maintain a calm composure by crossing her arms over her chest and leaning against the locker beside Freda's, never breaking eye contact with the boy.

It seemed as though this raven haired boy had enough of Jane's staring and muttered something incoherent to his friends before pushing away from them and coming to stand in front of Jane, looking down on her while she looked up at him.

"Are you ever going to make any other contact with me other than eye contact?" he asked, mirroring her straight face except Jane could see the amused twinkle in his eye.

"I didn't know it was an option." she replied, merely shrugging her shoulders while a swarm of butterflies seemed to be inside her stomach.

"Well here is my invitation. I'm Sweet Pea."

"Jane." she managed, her eyes wide as she wondered what words would come out of his mouth next, completely oblivious to the fact that Freda was still beside her, mouth slightly agape.

"I have to say, I believe I've been winning our staring contests." This statement made Jane chuckle to herself.

"I didn't know we were keeping track, Sweet Pea." Jane challenged.

Just then, the bell for first class sounded.

Sweet Pea's eyes flicked back to his friends who looked to him before taking off down the corridor. "Well Jane, maybe we can crack out the winner another time."

"Looking forward to it."

With that, Sweet Pea spun on his heel and strode off, leaving Jane alone with Freda once more.

"Are you joking me right now?" Freda slammed her locker door shut. Jane was not joking. She barely understood what just happened.

"He's so… tall." Jane muttered in response, still at a loss for the interaction she just was a part of.

Freda grabbed Jane's arm and dragged her along the hallway.

"English, let's go." Freda rolled her eyes. What a way to start the day.

Later in the day, Jane found herself sitting on the bleachers overlooking the football field. She didn't know if she could do it, let herself fall for another male being walking the halls of Riverdale High. Not that anything will happen between her and Sweet Pea, but what if there's a good chance? After her last boy mishap she had sworn them off. What was so different about this guy? This tall, mysterious, poorly named boy.

A/N: Aaaaand that's a wrap on chapter 2! hopefully you've enjoyed it just as much as chapter 1. I promise we'll get to the meaning of the title soon enough! xo B


	3. Chapter 3

Sweet Pea

Sweet Pea had never been a fan of school. Mind you, he did well enough to make it to where he is now. He wasn't stupid. In fact, he was too good at math. Every teacher from the Southside Highschool had been convinced the boy cheated on his tests and assignments.To Sweet Pea, it insulted him when he thought about it. Who says you can't be from the Southside and have some intellectual ability?

"Class, I've got 2 questions for you all." Ms. Brushett asked the group of students, Sweet Pea being one of them. This was his first time he attended his new English class, and wasn't overly fond of the middle age teacher who sat at the front of the room already. He sat near the back of his English class, arms crossed and leaning back in his seat.

"Who here enjoys writing essays?" three or four hands raised into the air, and Sweet Pea noticed his new acquaintance and staring contest challenger, Jane, was one of them and sitting in the middle row. He took a split second to gaze over her long brown hair that was roped into two braids on either side of her head, and twined into one of them was a little bit of purple that she must have had dyed underneath. He noticed her finger nails were painted white with pink glitter over them, and she wore multiple silver and gold rings on her slender fingers. His eyes then moved to the other side of the room, where found his ex-girlfriend, Savannah. The two had been broken up for a little under a year now but Sweet Pea still hated being in the same room as that bleached-blonde bitch.

Savannah Medley was the worst thing that ever happened to Sweet Pea. She cheated on him with various guys over the course of their 7 months together. He actually had loved her, and the day he caught her at the White Wyrm with an older man was the day the love died. Some say you never get over your first love, Sweet Pea would tell them to fuck right off.

"Good to know. Now, how many of you enjoy partner work?" Sweet Pea hadn't put his hand in the air either time, and noticed a larger amount of students had their hands in the air for this question. Jane's not being one of them.

"Well, you bunch will be glad to hear that my newest assignment is essays to be done in partners. Which, I will assign. It seems as though half of our class is made up of boys and girls who have recently joined us from the Southside of Riverdale, which means that we need to welcome them with open arms. For this essay for each student who was attending Riverdale High originally, shall be paired with a new student. The topic of your essay will be based on the history of Riverdale. Easy-peasy."

With that statement came an abundance of sighs and groans, mixed with the occasional "Seriously?"

Ms. Brushett pulled a slip of paper from her desk and began reading names, ignoring the sounds of her student's dismay. Sweet Pea listened for his partner, silently hoping he wasn't stuck with a dud, rather someone who would be more interested on just putting his name on the paper beside theirs. That is, until he heard his name called along with…

"Jane."

Now that caught Sweet Pea's attention.

Sweet Pea met Jane's eye, and watched her as everyone else got up to move and exchange seats to sit near their new partners. The girl stood and grabbed her bag after noticing that there probably wasn't a chance that Sweet Pea would move to her. He did not know how this would go. After their name exchange in the hallway yesterday morning, he didn't know what was supposed to come next.

"Hi." came a small voice from beside him. Sweet Pea snapped out of his daze and shifted in his chair to face her, trying his best to not be awkward.

"Jane, we meet again." a smirk played upon his lips as he watched her cheeks tinge pink momentarily.

The small girl pulled a notebook out of her bag along with a pen. "Let's get to it." she said, but Sweet Pea felt a hole burning in the side of his head. He turned his gaze to find the royal bitch herself now at the front of the room with her partner, staring at him and Jane. Too bad, jealous cunt, he thought to himself, sticking the middle finger up at her and turning his attention back to Jane.

He noticed Jane follow his gaze to Savannah, then back to him, curious.

Sweet Pea shrugged. "Don't worry about her, she's harmless." with that, Jane turned back to her notebook with an expression that Sweet Pea couldn't read.

He ran a hand through his hair. "You any good at essays? School work in general?" He asked, hopefully this chick would score him a good grade.

"I would like to think so," muttered Jane, her wide eyes averting their gaze from him and down to her notebook. He noticed she was already scribbling down notes. "I am interested to hear what you'd like to contribute to this essay."

"Jane, I'd really prefer not to mess up your grades by me touching that paper. I'd like to propose a new option."

Sweet Pea observed the look on Jane's face, which hadn't seemed to change since she sat down next to him.

"Let's hear it." she said, curiously scooting her chair closer.

"How about you write the essay, slap my name on it, and in return I'll give you a) a lesson in riding a motorcycle or b) a milkshake free of charge."

Sweet Pea watched as Jane's brows furrowed in thought, clearly fine with writing the paper without his help.

"Milkshake. Vanilla, please. Maybe you could make that come with an order of fries in a booth at Pops?" Sweet Pea was surprised to receive a challenge, especially from this quiet girl. His mind suddenly flipped back to the day he met her gaze at Pops, as we watched her dip the tip of her fry into her vanilla milkshake.

"Deal. Man, you dip your fries in your milkshake, don't you?" The raven haired boy asked, raising a brow inquisitively.

"You bet, I'm a fan of Salty and Sweet."

A/N: Here's another!! And the meaning behind the title!! Enjoy the jealous ex drama and cute sweet pea moments. Also enjoy Sweet Pea's POV.

xo B


	4. Chapter 4

Saturday night, check. Seven o'clock, check. Booth at Pop's, check. Now all Jane was waiting on was a tall, raven haired boy.

She couldn't get him out of her head. Still, she wasn't sure where this would go or how it would go. Hell, Jane wasn't even sure if she was ready to get involved with anyone else since Isaac. He was more different than she thought. Where Sweet Pea looked like he'd bite the head off of anyone who spoke to him the wrong way, he was very friendly and intriguing to her.

"There she is," came a deep voice from above her, and watched as Sweet Pea slid into the booth across from her.

"Well, it's about time." remarked Jane, allowing herself to give Sweet Pea a forceful smile.

"Don't worry," the boy started. "I already put in your salty and sweet order." he smirked at her, then his gaze moved downwards to his fingers. His hand sat on the table and he flexed his fingers, showing Jane his assortment of metal rings.

"You have more jewellery than I do." She indicated to his dog tags and the rings.

He let out a chuckle. "I guess you're right. I collect the rings, they help with a more powerful punch. Leave a deeper bruise."

Jane raised her eyebrows, ready to change the topic. "So, what's with the blonde girl who enjoys staring at us like we've just chopped her pony-tail off?"

"Jealous, pathetic, scum of an ex. Cheated on me for months. Sweet Pea waved his hand dismissively. "Enough about her. I'd like to know why you asked me here."

Jane looked down at her white and pink glittered nails, anxiously chipping the paint with her thumb. Thankfully, she was interrupted by the waitress that came with two vanilla milkshakes and orders of fries. Sweet Pea and Jane both muttered a thank you and the lady walked away.

"You got the same thing as me?" Jane asked the boy.

"Yeah, I wanted to try dipping a fry in my milkshake." he said with a shrug.

"Well, alright." Jane watched as Sweet Pea plucked the cherry off the top of the milkshake, pulling off the stem before popping it into his mouth. He was so handsome it nearly killed her. Tonight he'd exchanged his Serpent jacked for a denim very over a black hoodie.

"Sorry for choosing the typical hang out spot for tonight," she indicated the many booths filled by students from their school. "I just really love milkshakes."

Sweet Pea chuckled at the girl. That made Jane realize that she'd never seen him laugh before. He was always so serious and cool. "Don't worry about it. Speak of the precious devil…" Jane followed Sweet Pea's gaze over to the entrance where the tall blond jealous, pathetic scum of an ex sashayed her way towards their table. This time, Jane really got to look at her. She had a long pointy nose with a silver hoop through it, ripped jeans, high heeled black boots and a denim jacket covering a mesh-see through top. The girl had her hair done in the exact same braids as Jane. Strange.

"Sweetie. How are you tonight? Bored? Alone? A bunch of us are heading over to Talon's for a huge banger. Care to join?" Savannah didn't even look in Jane's direction, and Sweet Pea noticed.

"I'm with someone right now, Sav. I don't think she'd want to come to a party on the South Side." Sweet Pea shrugged.

"Actually, I'd love to go. Never been to a South Side party." Jane interjected, sitting up a little straighter in her seat.

Savannah rolled her eyes. "Fine, whatever. See you there, Sweets." She winked at Sweet Pea before twirling on her heel and strutting away. Jane noticed Sweet Pea averted his eyes back to Jane.

"No offense, but do you really want to come to a South Side party? There's going to be Serpents there." He asked.

"Oh shut it, Sweet Pea, I go to school with Serpents, I can party with them too."

"I never really pegged you for a partying type, little girl." he replied, sitting back and crossing his arms. "You took your car here, right? Well I'll just follow you home and then take you to the party. I won't drink tonight."

"Are you sure? I won't ask you to do that. I can just walk home." Jane shrugged, and the waitress came around. Sweet Pea was quick to pass her some paper bills to cover the costs. "Thanks." she said, taking a final sip of her milkshake before her and Sweet Pea got up from the booths. It was then she realized how much he towered over her, almost a foot in size difference. Cute, she thought to herself.

"After you." Sweet Pea held the door for Jane and she nodded in thanks and stepped into the chilly night.

"You're on a bike?" Jane asked, as Sweet Pea grabbed his helmet from the back of his motorcycle.

He gave her a small smile. "Of course." Sweet Pea swung a leg over the side of his bike and Jane started backing towards her car. "Safe drive home, Princess. I'll be right behind you."

"Don't judge my driving skills." she countered, returned the smile before climbing into her own car, the feeling of butterflies in her stomach overwhelming her and she hoped Sweet Pea didn't notice her pink tinged cheeks after he called her 'Princess'.

A/N: Short but sweet! Next chapter will be interesting, I promise!! xo B


	5. ch 5

Jane pulled into her driveway, closely followed by Sweet Pea on his motorcycle. As she got out of her car, she noticed Sweet Pea observing her home. True, it was small and quaint for the Northside, but that's all she and her mother could ever need and afford.

"I'll be right back out, I'm going to change." Jane called to Sweet Pea, and he gave her a nod.

"Make it snappy, shortcake."

Jane rolled her eyes and ran up the stone steps to her house, noticing her mom was gone from work. She used this moment to run upstairs to her room and pull on a black long sleeved bodysuit with a low-ish neckline and a pair of high waisted ripped jeans. She completed her look with a pair of silver hooped earrings. As a last minute decision, Jane decided on some deep red lipstick. After spritzing herself with her vanilla scented perfume, Jane made her way back outside to Sweet Pea.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." she said, and his eyes flicked up to meet hers, traveling from her lips to her chest, then quickly back to meet her gaze.

"Dont you look spiffy," Sweet Pea commented, and Jane found herself blushing once again. He handed her his spare helmet and she tugged it on over her curls. "You better hold on, Princess." he scooted up to give her space to climb on behind him, and she swung a leg over and found herself holding the seat. "Hold onto me, you goon." Sweet Pea laughed.

Jane let out a nervous chuckle before gripping either side of Sweet Pea's denim vest.

The pair pulled out of her driveway and sped down the road, across the tracks and into the Southside. Jane loved the feeling of the wind on her face as Sweet Pea cruised along. It was a rush of adrenaline, really. She'd never been on the back of a boy's bike before.

Eventually, they stopped near a driveway of a house that was already crowded with some bikes and beater cars, there were people out on the lawn, red solo cups and cans in hands. Sweet Pea shut off the engine and pulled his helmet off, which encouraged Jane to do the same, but not before She caught a whiff of a strong scented shampoo. Damn he smelled good.

"Here we are," Sweet Pea swing himself off the bike and held the handle bars while Jane hobbled off, nearly losing her balance when her food got stuck on the seat, but the tall Serpent was quick to catch her. "Did I leave you weak in the knees, little girl?" he said with a grin, and she gave him a sour look before straightening herself and letting go of his arm. Sweet Pea kicked out the kick-stand and put both of the helmets back on his bike. The house was thrumming with the beat of a song that came from inside.

"Hope you're ready for a Southside party. Don't go getting too drunk, it's my ass that's watching out for your ass." Sweet Pea nudged her with his elbow as they made their way past the groups outside, and Jane watched as they all greeted Sweet Pea. She kept herself mostly behind him, trying not to attract much attention. The pair had barely made their way inside before Sweet Pea was engulfed in a hug.

"Pea! Man! There you are, you're my best friend. Did you know that?" A stocker boy said as he swung his arms around Sweet Pea. Jane recognized him to be boy he was always with, the classier one from the other night at Pop's. "Who's this bombshell?" he indicated Jane as he let go of the taller boy.

"Fangs, cool it. She's my plus one tonight. Meet Jane." Sweet Pea introduced her, and Jane found herself really enjoying the way her name sounded on his lips.

"Jane, I'm Fangs. Here on the Southside, we hug when we're drunk." Fangs then proceeded to give Jane a bear hug. "Here, have a beer new friend Jane!" he pulled a can from the inside of his leather jacket. Jane graciously accepted it, surprised to find it was cold.

"Thanks, new friend Fangs." Jane cracked the cam and took a sip, earning a raised brow from Sweet Pea. How could he tell she wasn't a beer drinker?

"There you guys are! We were just about to leave, Fangs hates being at parties without his Sweetie Pie." a rather short pink haired girl had joined them. "I'm Toni." she said when she caught Jane's gaze on her, and extended a hand. Jane shook it, returning the smile.

"Nice to meet you, I love your hair!" Jane exclaimed, then indicated to the purple in her own. That earned a grin from Toni.

"Purple, love it. You fit right in, it's about time too. Being the only girl in a group of guys gets boring sometime." Toni laughed and threw an arm around Jane.

Jane had never really be involved with a group of friends before. Just the odd friends and Freda. Shit, she forgot about Freda. Oh well, she'll love this story on Monday morning. She took a moment to observe the three who were deep in conversation about the goings on of Talon's party before Jane and Sweet Pea arrived.

After a couple moments, Sweet Pea took her by the sleeve when Toni and Fangs challenged each other to a game of beer pong. He led her into the kitchen where there was numerous bottles of alcohol and different mixes, and a whole cooler full of beer. "Let's get you something better than beer."

"Are you joking? I love beer." Jane joked, taking a final sip, but failed in keeping a straight face and reacted to the bitterness.

Sweet Pea chuckled and pulled the can from her grasp and set it down for a hammered individual to finish. "How about some rum and coke? Vodka cran? Straight whiskey?" he grinned, pulling on the charade as bar tender.

"Vodka cran, kind sir." Sweet Pea obliged and filled the red solo cup a quarter of the way with vodka, then the rest with cranberry juice. Jane accepted the cup and stuck her pinky in instinctively, like she would at home, mixing the drink before popping her pinky into her mouth to suck the remains off.

"Are you trying to attract me right now?" Sweet Pea asked, leaning against the counter. "Because if so, it's working."

Jane grinned up at him. "Not really, I needed to mix." she shrugged, taking a gulp from her cup. "You do a good vodka to cran ratio."

Sweet Pea smiled, and suddenly the house was quiet and it was just Sweet Pea and Jane in the house, the two of them caught eye to eye, and Sweet Pea raised an arm to tuck a curl behind Jane's ear. Butterflies flew around her stomach and she found herself taking another drink from her cup.

"You're cute when you're nervous." He told her, and she was all of a sudden forced to put her drink on the counter before Sweet Pea cupped her cheek in his hand, pressing his lips to hers. Jane felt herself kiss back, half startled but half craving more of him.

"Excuse me?" came a shrill voice from the doorway of the kitchen. Jane and Sweet Pea quickly pulled apart to find Savannah standing in the door way, looking furious. "Pea, I told you about this party and you take a Northsider and kiss her? At the party? Where I told you to come?"

"Fuck off, Savannah. Go fuck Talon or some other sorry idiot." Sweet Pea shout back over the sound of the music, and Jane pulled back as he pushed back from the counter and towards Savannah. "You can't keep inserting yourself into my life whenever you damn well please."

With a scoff, Savannah spun on her heel and stormed out of the kitchen.

"I'm sorry." Sweet Pea turned back to Jane, eyes apologetic. He extended a hand to her. "Let's go find Fang's and Toni."

Jane took another gulp from her drink and graciously put her hand in Sweet Pea's, which was big and warm and comforting. She allowed him to guide her through the body-crowded living room and to where Toni and Fangs were sprawled on the couch. Sweet Pea and Jane plopped down on the edge, dangerously close to one another. Instead of inserting herself into the conversation, Jane let the vodka clear her thoughts of Savannah. Soon her head lulled onto Sweet Pea's shoulder.

"Hey, are you okay?" came his deep voice as his hand gently shook your arm.

Jane lifted her head to meet her gaze and found him swimming around in her vision. "I'm ready for home." she told him. She should have remembered vodka made her sleepy.

Sweet Pea nodded and the two said their good byes to Toni and Fangs before he slipped her hand back into Jane's and he guided her back out and onto his bike. He fasted her helmet on before his and gave her head a tap.

"I'm sorry I cut your party short." Jane told him as they climbed back onto the bike.

"That's okay, just make sure you hold on to me tightly, Sleepy." Sweet Pea gave her a reassuring pat on the hand when she fisted her freezing hands into his denim vest pockets.

The two cruised back into the Northside soon enough and back up Jane's driveway. Jane noticed her mom still wasn't home from work, which would make it easier for her to go to bed quicker.

"Can I have your number?" Sweet Pea asked Jane as he helped her off his bike. "I think I'd like to take you out again."

"Yeah, uh, here." Jane took his phone and plugged her number in under the name 'Princess'. She handed it back with a wink. "Thank you for taking me tonight. I like your friends. And your lips." she let the vodka add, earning a chuckle from the raven haired boy.

He quickly dipped his head and caught her lips in his once again, finishing what he started at the party. This time the kiss grew deeper as he wrapped his arms around her waist and her arms twined around his neck.

It seemed as though sparks flew from between the both of them, Jane intoxicated by the taste of him instead of the vodka cran. Then her thoughts got to her. Flashbacks of the blond haired boy who took advantage of her previously. Quickly, she pulled back, and both pairs of arms dropped to their sides. "I'll see you at school." Jane gave him a smile, an extra kiss on the cheek and quickly ran into her house, leaving a confused but happy Sweet Pea staring after her.

A/N: The cutest moment you've all been waiting for. Thank you for reading this far and there will definitely be more to come!!


	6. Chapter 6

The following Monday, Jane woke up and dreaded having to go back to the school and face Sweet Pea. She'd spent the whole Sunday writing the paper for English, and Sweet Pea hadn't texted. Maybe he lied to her. Maybe he just wanted her for arm candy at the party to make Savannah jealous.

With a sigh, Jane dragged herself out of bed and forced herself to shower and blow-dry her hair. She picked out some plain black leggings and topped it off with a striped black and white t-shirt. Mornings were still chilly in Riverdale, so she grabbed her trusty cardigan. She didn't feel like doing much to her hair today so she let if fall in her natural curls. Jane crept down the stairs so as not to wake her mother and made herself some tea in a travel mug while she ate a banana.

Why did she go to that stupid party? Why did she have a crush on a boy after the last one ended so terribly?

Pushing her negative thoughts away, she focused on driving herself to school without a daydream distracted accident.

Upon her arrival, she made sure not to park near the motorcycles and trudged her way into the school with her bag slung over her shoulder and her travel mug. Sipping on her tea, she lurked the halls in search of Freda but also careful not to be spotted by Sweet Pea. Jane soon found Freda at her usual table in the library and managed to spill everything that happened before the bell rang, which left her best friend in complete shock.

"Damn, my best friend in with a biker gang." Freda joked, winking at Jane.

Jane rolled her eyes and the bell rang. "We will discuss this later, Freda." she made an indication with her hand to zip her lips. The pair bade farewell and took off to their respective classes. Jane's first class was english. Shit.

She took her usual seat and didn't look up from her phone until Ms. Brushett called their attention to her. Out of the corner of her eye she could make out the tall raven haired boy. Jane kept her gaze on the teacher until they were told to hand their papers in to her. With one last look over, she made sure both names were signed before she stood up to hand it in, placing it in her teachers hand before turning and walking back to her desk, failing the simple task of not making eye contact with Sweet Pea. He looked tired but also confused. He shot her a half smile and she returned it with a small one, and took her seat once again. Jane wrapped her hands around her travel mug and her gaze on Ms Brushett until the buzzer rang.

Jane took off out of the class and managed to dodge Sweet Pea until the end of the day. Right before final bell, she received a text.

'Meet me on the bleachers after school. -SP'

Why wasn't this getting any easier?

The final bell rang and Jane slowly made her way to the bleachers, dreading this meeting and her heart in her throat. Sweet Pea was already there, and he patted the seat beside him.

"Look, you've been avoiding me all day. I thought we hit it off the other night. What did I do wrong?" Sweet Pea said plainly and to the point.

"You didn't do anything wrong. We did- uh we did hit it off. I had fun at the party." replies Jane, her eyes on her chipped fingernail polish.

"Hey, there's something you're not telling me. Was it Savannah? The kiss?"

With a sigh, Jane met his gaze. He had deep, dark eyes that knew more than she could fathom, sure she knew school but Sweet Pea seemed to know the outside world. She could tell by different scars on his hands and face, and especially the tattoo of the Serpent sticking out from under his jacket collar.

"I don't know if I'm ready to let another boy into my life yet. The last one was enough for me to swear to stay alone forever." she admitted.

Sweet Pea placed a hand on her knee and she flinched, causing him to pull away quickly. "Were you hurt before?" he asked, a different tone in his voice that Jane had never heard before.

She couldn't bring herself to answer, he already knew the truth.

"Who did it?" he asked.

"He graduated last year. You wouldn't know him." she shivered, and caught a worried look from Sweet Pea.

"You don't have to talk about it anymore. Jane, I really, really like you. I won't smother you and force you to date me. I won't hurt you." Sweet Pea took her hand in both of his. "We can start with being friends. How about that?"

"Friends. Yeah." Jane nodded, allowing Sweet Pea's fingers to graze over her own, warm and comforting.

"Okay, Jane. I have another question for you." he said, a smile dancing on his lips. The lips Jane wanted on hers so badly, but couldn't allow it.

"Shoot."

"Are you afraid of hanging around Southside Serpents?"

This made Jane laugh. "I'm not afraid of a group of ultrafine ladies and gentleman who ride bikes and wear leather jackets."

"Oh Princess, we do so much more than that. In fact, you'll have to come to the Quarry with Toni, Fangs and I. You in?" Sweet Pea asked, raising a brow.

"Yes. Yeah. When? I have my car.." Jane rambled, and nervously began twisting her hair between her fingers.

"I'll follow you home. Let's go."

Jane and Sweet Pea met again in her driveway, and she tossed her book bag and travel mug in the front door before heading back outside to jump on the bike behind Sweet Pea. Her new friend. He fastened her helmet on before taking off down the road. Jane had her hands shoved in his leather jacket pockets as she watched the trees and houses speed by, eventually crossing the tracks and after a few minutes, taking a dirt road to the Quarry. She'd heard of it before but she'd also heard it was solely for Southside use.

It was off a river bank overlooking a giant pool of water, and already seemed to be occupied by what appeared to be Fangs and Toni. Jane hoped they were as nice sober as they were drunk.

"New friend Jane!" called Fangs, as Sweet Pea parked the bike. Jane hopped off without assistance from Sweet Pea this time, earning an impressive grin from him.

"New friend Fangs!" Jane replied, and she was engulfed into another bear hug. Yup. Still as nice.

"Get off her, man. You're messing up her hair." Sweet Pea joked, most likely trying to make sure Jane's personal space bubble wasn't invaded.

Fangs let go of Jane and instead wrapped his arms around Sweet Pea, which soon caused a wrestling match to break out between the boys. Jane laughed and made her way over to where Toni sat on a log next to a makeshift bonfire.

"How do you put up with those two?" Jane asked, shaking her head as she sat down on the log across from Toni.

Toni gave a laugh and shrugged. "I'm so used to it, they're always like this unfortunately." Jane nodded and watched on as Sweet Pea pushed himself off of Fangs, racing to grab a seat on the log next to Jane, while Fangs took the seat opposite next to Toni.

"Did you enjoy your time, boys?" Toni asked the pair, who seemed to be vastly out of breath.

"Just putting on a show for our new friend, Sugar." Fangs joked, and stuck his hands out towards the fire. "Did FP ask either of you to go for the job tonight?" he asked, which sounded like Serpent talk and led Jane to raising a brow.

Toni shook her head, but Sweet Pea gave them a nod. "Yeah, going to knock some heads." Then he turned to Jane. "If I come back all beaten and bruised, will you patch me up, Princess?"

Jane laughed nervously, and pulled her cardigan closer around her. "Sure thing." she said, earning an eyebrow wiggle from Fangs. Toni just buried her head in her hands.

"You boys. I don't know what I'll do with you." the pink haired girl laughed. "Go get some more wood for the fire." she ordered, and the boys did so, Sweet Pea pausing to pat Jane on the head.

Toni pushed off her seat and came to sit beside Jane. "So, tell me. How did you two meet?" she asked, quite interested in the details behind hers and Sweet Pea's friendship.

"He was pushed into me on your guys' first day at Riverdale High." she answered, glad to have someone to talk to.

"You're the little girl!" Toni exclaimed, grinning. "Sweet Pea talked about colliding with a cutie, wrapping his arms around her and saving her from falling onto the floor."

"Yeah, right. Except my locker caught me, not him." Jane laughed, rolling her eyes at the boy's proud lie.

"I should have known better. Well, I'm glad you're here now. I shouldn't be telling you this, but Sweet Pea has been falling into the dark recently, and he needed a light. Hopefully you're the light that will help him." Toni admitted, looking over towards the two who were challenging each other to carry the bigger amount of branches. There's obviously more to this boy than Jane had thought. She was interested to go deeper with him, to be his light. Hopefully he would let her.

After chatting around the fire for quite some time, the sky grew dim and the air cold. Soon enough, Fangs' phone buzzed with a text from FP.

"It's time, let's go Sweetie Pie." Fangs stood up and clapped his hands together, and Toni pushed herself to her feet, Jane and Sweet Pea following suit.

"Do you know what kind of job he has for you guys?" Toni asked, and Jane looked to Sweet Pea.

"Not sure. Probably something with the Ghoulies. I'm going to take Jane home and then I'll be at the Wyrm." The four said their goodbyes and Jane climbed on the bike behind Sweet Pea.

"What's a job?" she called over the sound of the wind.

"It's something new every time. It's how we make our money. Sort of like Grand Theft Auto but not as bad." Sweet Pea told her, his voice loud so she could hear. "Don't be worried. I'll text you when I'm done."

A sense of easiness fell over the pair as they cruised along, Jane's hands firmly gripping Sweet Pea's leather jacket. She had to resist the urge to rest her head on his back.

They soon pulled back into Jane's driveway, and she slid off the bike and handed her helmet back to Sweet Pea.

"Thanks for today. It was fun." Jane said, shoving her hands in the pockets on her cardigan.

"Thanks for clearing things up between us too." Sweet Pea replied, offering a smile.

"Anytime, well you be safe. I'm looking forward to your 'all finished' text."

"Hopefully it comes sooner rather than later. These things get intense." Sweet Pea looked down at his hands, and that made Jane nervous. "I'll see you at school?"

"Of course. See ya." It seemed as though a split second past and Sweet Pea almost moved to kiss her, but quickly stuck his hand out for a handshake. Jane laughed awkwardly and shook his hand. His nice, big, warm hand.

"See you later, Princess." Sweet Pea said with a wink followed by a waved as Jane walked up her stone steps, and watched as the leather jacket clad boy sped down her street and off into the distance. Hopefully this would get easier.

A/N: Thank you for sticking around this long!! Pm me if you have any requests or questions ️ xo B


	7. ch7

Over the next few weeks, Jane and Sweet Pea spent almost every day together when he was not doing jobs or Jane wasn't studying. Even days when they had Toni and Fangs with them, they still managed to learn more and more about each other. Jane found out that Sweet Pea lived alone in his trailer, after his mother took off with another man and his father hadn't been around in years. She learned also that he had a hard time loving, that Fangs and Toni were his family along with the Serpents. He lived by his own means, doing odd jobs for people around his trailer park and his jobs with the serpents.

The two had been doing a very good job at not escalating quickly into a relationship, and Jane was glad that they were able to test the waters in a friendship. Until one night, that is.

It was a Saturday, and Jane had spent the entire weekend so far deeply into a new book series. Reading in the bath, reading in bed, reading during meals, reading while texting Sweet Pea. That day he hadn't texted since the morning, claiming to be put on assignment for an all day job with the Serpents. He'd come out of all his Serpent missions completely unscathed, or so Jane thought. It was when she was tucked in bed at eight pm reading when she got a phone call from Toni.

"Fangs is picking you up. Sweet Pea got hurt. Get ready, he'll be there any minute." Toni almost shouted over the phone and Jane jumped out of bed, heart rate accelerating as she threw on jeans and a hoodie, grabbing her phone before running down the stairs. She quickly pulled on her boots, at the same time she saw headlights pull into her driveway.

Jane shut the lights off and flew out the door, into Fangs' car. He sped back down the street and towards the Southside.

"What happened? Why are you covered in blood, Fangs?" Jane attempted to ask calmly, observing the burgundy splatters that littered Fangs' hands and white t-shirt, and his leather jacket.

"He'll be okay, Jane. Just keep telling yourself that, okay?" Fangs told her, his voice strained. Jane reached out and grabbed his hand that wasn't on the wheel. It was hot with adrenaline. "The people we were delivering things to didn't like the way he acted, they told him to take it down a notch. Sweet Pea asked what they were going to do about it. I was too far away."

"What did they do?"

"He got stabbed, Jane. Under my watch. I could have stopped it!" He sped the car up and they flew over the train tracks.

"Fangs! Stop. It's not your fault!" Jane yelled at him over the sound of the loud engine and the pouring rain. "He'll be okay. You said it yourself."

"Yeah, he will. Okay." Fangs slowed his breathing and focused on the road, thanks to Jane. Soon enough they pulled into Sunnyvale and into Sweet Pea's driveway and they barely had the car parked when Jane jumped out, closely followed by Fangs.

Jane flew up the steps when Fangs quickly grabbed her wrist. "Don't show him you're scared, okay? Promise me." Fangs demanded.

"I promise." she nodded, assuring Fangs before Toni threw open the door.

"Good, you're here." the pink haired girl grabbed Jane from Fangs and pulled her inside. Fp sat at the kitchen table along with a couple of the other Serpents. "He's in his room." she guided Jane down the hall and into a grey painted bedroom, cramped tightly together with a double bed, dresser and closet, and posters of Pink Floyd and the Ramones on the wall.

"There's my Princess." A weak voice came from the bed. There Sweet Pea lay, in just a pair of plaid pyjama pants. He was covered in gauze and wrap all around his shoulder and the top of his left arm. His face was pale and his eyes were dark.

Jane tried to smile at him, and he pat the edge of the bed. Fangs and Toni stepped out of the room and shut the door behind them.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, and she took the seat on the edge of the bed, trying not to move it and hurt him.

"Meh, I'm okay. Better now that you're here." He took her hand with his good arm, interlacing their fingers. He was very warm.

"How sweet, Sweets." She chuckled, trying her best to lighten the mood.

"I know you shouldn't have to see me this way. I just needed you." Sweet Pea admitted, stroking his thumb over her fingers.

"I'm so sorry this happened, I heard how and it's just crazy. But you're going to be okay, you'll heal in no time!" Jane rambled.

Sweet Pea shushed her. "Shh. Jane. It's okay. You don't have to be nervous." This was silly, he was the one in the bed with the stab wound.

"I have to tell you something, Sweet Pea. When I heard you got hurt, it was like something inside me broke and it would stay that way until I saw you. I need to be with you, I'm done fighting it."

"Really?" Sweet Pea asked, his face seeming to light up.

To answer, Jane leaned down and pressed a long kiss to his lips. After a moment, she pulled away. "I'm not good at being friends." she smiled, a tear sliding down her cheek.

Sweet Pea reaches up and wiped it away with his thumb. "It's you and me, Princess." he returned the smile. "I'm not going to hurt you. I promise." It was then he reached up and around her neck, pulling Jane in for a long, loving kiss.

A/N: C'est le fin! Thanks everyone for reading and sticking through this long, there will be more in the future! xo B


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